10 money-saving apps for SMEs

If you own a small business, you probably spend a lot of time finding new ways to save money.

Happily, it’s now easier than ever for SMEs to cut costs, and smartphone mobile apps are a useful tool for tightening the purse strings. There are dozens of apps out there designed to help you save on business expenses; here are just 10 of them to get you started.

1. QuickBooks

Hiring an accountant can be eye-wateringly expensive, but there is another way. QuickBooks is an online accounting service that allows you to manage your business finances remotely, and can be used to create and send invoices, reconcile transactions and oversee your profit and loss. The app is free to download and comes with a 30-day free trial, at which point you’ll have to start paying a fee each month.

2. MailChimp

Branching out into direct email marketing? You can connect with a large customer base for cheap using the MailChimp app. This handy app lets you create professional emails and newsletters before broadcasting them to your customers. You can then track the performance of each email in real time, helping you to make adjustments to future mail-outs. The service is affordable for small businesses, and could help drive sales or increase traffic to your website.

3. Skype

Skype is one of the oldest video conferencing services out there, and it’s still considered one of the best. The app is great for speaking to clients and attending meetings remotely, potentially saving you hundreds of pounds a year in travel costs. The main benefit of the app, however, is that it’s affordable to use, with many features available for free. No matter where your clients and colleagues are in the world, this brilliant app lets you connect with them for minimal expense.

4. Minicabit

If you regularly take taxis to and from meetings, you could benefit from Minicabit, an app that compares fares and prices from all local (and participating) taxi firms. To start saving on the cost of cab journeys all you have to do is enter your location and where you want to go, and the app will bring up the best possible prices for that trip. With great savings to be had, you stand to slash your travel expenses each time you take a taxi for business.

5. Dropbox

If your business needs more digital storage, there’s no need to pay through the nose to get it. By using a cloud computing service like Dropbox you’ll get all the space you need to keep your business moving, without investing masses of capital. Dropbox lets you access and share all of your files wherever you are on any device, offering absolute flexibility for small businesses. Save a document on your desktop PC, and access it on your phone on the way to a big meeting. It’s really that easy.

6. Skyscanner

Travelling overseas on business can put a real strain on your finances, with flights, car hire and hotels proving a costly overhead. To access the very cheapest airfares, download the Skyscanner app, a flight comparison tool that searches millions of flights for the best deals. Wherever you’re going, and no matter how last minute, this useful app will find the best prices out there, saving you time and money. You can also set up price alerts and compare prices on hotels and car hire, so there’s no need to spend hours trawling the web for the best deals.

7. mySupermarket

Whether it’s milk, biscuits or coffee, the bare necessities of running a business can add up over the course of a year, so it pays to shop smart. Download the mySupermarket app, and you can compare the price of everyday office essentials at your local supermarkets, helping you find the very best deals. Scrimping on groceries for your business may sound a step too far, but it could free up valuable cash that can be invested into other areas of the business.

8. Expensify

Keeping track of business expenses is the bane of managers and HR teams the world over, but it’s just got a whole lot easier thanks to Expensify. This brilliant mobile app lets you record your expenditure in one place before sharing it with others, so no more lost receipts and missing info. Not only will this save you time, but it could alleviate the need to hire a dedicated HR assistant — saving the business money.

9. Evernote Scannable

Since smartphones came along, office scanners have started collecting dust. That’s because it’s incredibly simple to scan documents using a phone’s camera and a dedicated scanning app like Evernote Scannable. Eliminating the need to fork out on a pricey piece of equipment you’ll rarely use, the Evernote Scannable app lets you scan paper documents and turn them into high-quality images, ready to save or share. And best of all? It’s totally free.

10. Weebly

If the thought of building a website leaves you fretting over how much it will cost, it’s time you met Weebly. This affordable and intuitive web hosting service makes it easy to build a professional website without paying someone to do it for you, potentially saving you thousands in web design fees. Using the Weebly Mobile app on your smartphone or tablet is laughably simple, and you can create a website or blog in a matter of minutes.

Like mobile apps, Gazprom Energy is here to make life simpler for SMEs. With our award-winning customer service, we make managing your business energy easy. To find out more, visit our homepage or call us on 0845 230 0011.

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